I went back there today and stayed and talked to the priest after the service. He told me the real history of the church. Built by British architect C.E. Street, it was a present to the British from the Ottoman Empire after the Crimean war. In the 1970's attendance dropped so low that it eventually became a storeroom, but in the early 1990's, it was reconsecrated.
They apparently usually do have music, but the organist is on vacation. So is the priest. The one I talked to today has been here for a month but he and his wife are going back to Dublin next week. He's been a priest for only two years, and isn't used to performing such a high mass. He asked me what I was used to. "Well, I'm Presbyterian," I answered. "Oh, so this is really high, then." He told me his wife used to be Presbyterian and that his church back home is "almost Calvinist."
Finding out that I was from Chicago, he wanted to know what I thought of "Saint Barack Obama." He was impressed with him and called him "a candle in the dark."
I also learned more about the congregation. Many of the people who attend services are refugees (from what, I'm not exactly sure), and there are a few students there doing research on those communities and helping the people with their English. I didn't get the chance to talk with anyone else, unfortunately. Next week Melissa is taking me back to the Armenian church, which I'm greatly looking forward to, but I hope I can return soon. I could tell that some people remembered me from last time (like the lady I'd frantically asked what page we were on when I came in late), and it seems like a friendly group of people.
Dad asked me if I have a favorite bookstore. I still don't, but I have a favorite CD store. It's called Lale Plak and is at the top of Galipdede Caddesi, the start of the music district. Now, according to a conversation I'd had with Mike and Gabe, this music district, situated right downtown, can be pretty touristy and has a lot of people who don't really know what they're doing. There's some other place in the city that's supposed to be a haven for musicians, but since no one really knew about it, a lot of people ended up moving to Galipdede. So you have to go to both to really get a feel for music in this city. I haven't been to the other yet.
But right, this CD store. When Rachel and I walked in after our respective church services, they were playing Hijaz Mandra, which is pretty much MEME's theme song. The store is tiny, but has lots of drawers so they can fit a lot of CDs. It's full of the Western and Turkish varieties of Classical, Jazz, Classic Rock, and Folk. I asked them to recommend a classical kemençe CD, and they played it on the store's system before I bought it. The CD is Derya Türkan playing with a bass and a cello player. It's pretty sweet.
Ack! No pictures this time. Sorry.
No comments:
Post a Comment